spiritual food for thought

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body of Christ

Recently, the controversial pastor Mark Driscoll resigned from being the lead pastor for Mars Hill Church in Seattle. Yesterday, the church announced that it was disbanding and dissolving all of its satellite campuses, giving each location freedom to chart it’s own path for the future. Being a pastor’s kid and having lived in church for most of my life, this announcement saddens me for various reasons:

as humans, we often fall into the trap of following people more than we follow Jesus

oftentimes the people we think are leading us closer to Christ are made of the same flawed flesh in which we live and breath

we struggle with how to keep each other accountable without being judgmental, intolerant or divisive

we are susceptible to many internal deceptions that stroke our flesh and poison our passion for Jesus

somewhere it talks about striking the shepherd and scattering the sheep

So here’s my point: there are lots of hurt, confused and disillusioned people from all of this fallout with Mars Hill and Mark Driscoll, many of whom have followed Jesus because of Pastor Mark’s leadership and influence, as well as the communities that had formed around the satellite churches connected with Mars Hill. In 1Cor 12, Paul talks about the how the body of Christ functions together, diverse parts and pieces working together in complementary more than competitive ways, promoting Jesus in all ways and opportunities. In Galatians 6, Paul talks about how we should bear each other’s burdens, restoring, assisting and being part of Jesus’ redemptive work.

So as members of the body of Christ, let’s be devoted to pray for this situation and moreso for the people who may find themselves floundering from all of these changes. Let’s pray:

that the enemy does not make progress with this opportunity for strife, dissension and conflict

for the body of Christ that has been a part of the Mars Hill fellowship – let’s pray for their hearts